With all the back and forth between Geo and Gordon Ryan on social media, I just realised that the ACB contract that Gordon just signed is exclusive to this promotion. Do you guys know if every athlete ACB has signed are exclusive to ACB, or can they still compete in IBJJF, etc? Because they signed guys like Buchecha, Leandro Lo, Keenan, Lepri that usually dominate the IBJJF scene so I was wondering.

Is it odd that our coach regularly leaves the mats, and the building, as soon as the drilling part of the class is over and it is time for us to roll? We roll for 45 minutes at the end of class and he is rarely there (he may stay 1-2 times per month?)….how does he know whether or not we are improving with our rolling?

Whenever people find out that I have traveled to a lot of countries and visited different gyms around the world, they often ask me … “What is my gym’s level like compared to other BJJ gyms around the world?” You might have asked this question to people visiting your gym from other countries. Or you […]

I just went through a crazy experience today, and I feel I have to write it down. I thought it might be motivational for other new white belts so I might as well share it here.

I was in the audience at a presentation today where someone else in the audience had some form of a panic attack and assaulted the speaker (there’s some history, but it’s not relevant for this story). They went down very quickly and two other audience members came in on top to try and separate them, but it became quite a tangle. I arrived later, as I was in the back of the the audience. I approached from behind the attacker’s head and set up a rear mount position. I reached one arm around his neck (over his shoulder) and with it grabbed my other wrist (which went in from under his shoulder). When I had control I learned that he was still holding onto the speaker, but because I had control of his shoulder I could slowly adjusts my grip and use leverage to force his arm so he would have to release the speaker. …after that I pretty much held him in a choke hold (relaxed when he calmed down) until the police arrived.

Anyway, it felt quite good that I knew what to do to take control and de-escalate the situation.

I’m prepping to jump back into training after a pretty long hiatus. I always had a problem with the sheer length of my grappling sessions (2+ hour classes right after striking) and never quite found the right supplements for training. What do you guys like to use for pre/intraworkout supplements to make sure you aren’t getting sluggish and losing your drive halfway through?

I recently listened to the Mendes Bros on a podcast, and enjoyed the interview so much I subscribed to their online academy.

They said that at most BJJ Schools around the world, new students are just kind of tossed in to rolling, with zero comprehension of BJJ, its overview, or a sound outline of their objectives.

They said they don’t have new students roll until they develop an understanding and mindset for Jiu Jitsu.

I thought this was very interesting and as a student of both teaching methods and Jiu Jitsu. Personally, I feel that someone can be taught an assortment of techniques but they’re not going to be as effective if they don’t understand the variables of where, when, why and how to execute them.

As a teacher or a student, what methods do you feel are effective that will ‘stick’ for new students?(obviously drilling, but I mean overall understanding)

I feel like I might gain from taking video of open mat rolls. Might give me an outside perspective to apply to the invisible jiu jitsu that is happening elsewhere. Obviously everyone takes video of your tourneys but do you take vid of your academy rolls and how has it helped/hurt your training?

If you’ve just started Muay Thai/Kickboxing training, then you’ve most likely been wearing any old shorts and an old loose fitting t-shirt to class. This is fine for your first class or so. You don’t even know if you’ll like it yet so there’s no need to invest in top quality gear before you’ve even […]